We interviewed Jordy Mont-Reynaud, entrepreneur and former youngest ever US chess master, circa 1994. Jordy talked to us about what he’s learned about the virtues of failure by playing (and losing) a lot of chess games. He told us how he defines success, and he gave great advice for young people who are just now discovering passion in their studies and work.

Jordy lives and works in San Francisco, CA, where he’s busy developing his latest adventure called Goal Mafia, a social game that helps people “execute” their goals. For more thoughts on the value of failing, check out his original post about failure on his blog.